Imagine
by Cloudshaper
Summary: “Imagine the darkness, in love with the light.” Just a fluffy one-shot involving a certain space pirate and the young man she loves on a rooftop...


A/N: Hello there! This is my first Tenchi Muyo story, and it's a simple one-shot I threw together right now. It's weird, I was so in love with this show roughly ten years ago, and just last week I got back into it…a very weird feeling. Anyways, I hope it's not too suckish. I haven't written a decent story in God knows how long. Anyways, hope you enjoy! Also, this is set just a little bit after _Daughter of Darkness_, just to clarify.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Tenchi Muyo!_

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The night sky had never seemed clearer, a dark blanket settled over the peaceful Okayama. Stars were patterned across the sky, almost like a painting. A slight wind began to rustle through the tall trees. Light ripples appeared in the glassy lake, the reflection of the full moon wavering in the water. The Masaki household was beginning to rest, as dinner had been finished roughly a half hour earlier, and the atmosphere within the house was beginning to ease.

Little teal-haired Sasami was sprawled on the ground, stroking Ryo-ohki's brown fur. Mihoshi and Kiyone were sitting on the couch, flipping through channels on the television. Lady Ayeka had retired to her room, sitting in front of her mirror and brushing her long, lilac hair. Tenchi was finishing the dishes in the kitchen, with help from his father, and his grandfather sipped tea from his cup, still sitting at the dinner table. Of course, Washu was in her lab, attending to the revival of Mayuka. Only Ryoko could not be found within the house….

The cyan-haired space pirate sat on the roof, gazing up at the moon. It had been such a short while since she had fought in battle against Yuzuha, with Tenchi by her side. The whole encounter had felt extremely surreal, an experience she could hardly recall anyways...she just remembered Tenchi……being with him, fighting side by side with him…what a pair they made….

"_Imagine the darkness, in love with the light."_

Could it have been any truer to her current scenario? Here she was, a woman of violence and piracy, madly in love with the young man who defined purity and goodness. Often times, Ryoko wondered what she had seen in him from the beginning. Was it his sincerity? His dedication? His boyish charms? She couldn't pinpoint one source, but all of them. She loved everything about him, and with no real explanation why. All she knew was that when she was with him, she as at her happiest, whether he returned the feelings or not. He completed her. He was the reason her world turned, the reason she woke up in the mornings, even with the worst of hangovers. Just thinking about his smile sent shivers down her spine, caused something inside of her to heat up.

Ryoko shivered a bit and brought her legs close to her chest. She wasn't exactly cold, but a soft rush of cold hair brushed against her bare skin, leaving her chilly.

"Ryoko?" a familiar, soothing voice called.

The space pirate didn't need to turn to recognize the voice of the man she loved.

Ryoko turned her head to the side so he could hear her: "Hello, Tenchi."

She heard him meander across the roof, stopping right beside her. She didn't look at him, but simply out at the serene lake stretched out before her. "Better not let Ayeka catch you up here—I'll never hear the end of it." She said, trying to converse. Ryoko heard Tenchi give a small chuckle, but no words escaped his lips.

A peaceful silence filled the gap.

"What are you doing up here?" he questioned, ending the silence.

Ryoko shrugged, dropping her legs so they dangled over the edge of the roof. She kicked her slender legs back and forth slowly, staring at her feet. "Just thinking…" she said, quite distantly. Although she couldn't see his face, Tenchi gave her confused look. He took a seat beside her, asking "What about?"

She stopped swinging her legs, but continued to stare down. Although she was gazing into air, her face had a look of compassion plastered on it, almost as if she was looking at Tenchi rather than her feet.

She broke her stare and looked out onto the lake. "I dunno….everything, I guess." She lowered herself onto her back, the shingles of the roof not as uncomfortable on her back as she'd expected. She put her hands behind her head in a relaxed manner, and tilted herself a bit to smile at him. He returned the smile.

"Everything?" he asked.

"Yup. Just about everything."

He nodded, accepting her answer.

"Including you."

Tenchi expected her to be thinking about him, but something in her voice sent a chill through him. He caught her gaze in his. "What do you mean by that?"

She gave a smile and looked back out at the lake. "Just about…..how happy you make me. How happy I am that…." She drifted off. She felt almost out of character, but she knew she was speaking from the heart. "….that I met you. That you put up with all of my crap…and I thank you for that." She finished. The words sounded odd and unfamiliar in falling out of her mouth, but it was something she needed to get off her chest. After all, she _was _the most notorious space pirate. Surely her feelings wouldn't get the best of her. All she knew was that she would get something out of Tenchi tonight.

He didn't answer for quite some time. Ryoko wondered if she'd done something horribly wrong. Her nerves were calmed when she heard him say "You know Ryoko….I feel the same way." Her eyes widened as she took in each word. She turned to stare at him. "You mean it?" she asked, somewhat bewildered. He smiled at her childlike face. "Of course!" Ryoko felt herself blushing and looked away quickly. She felt her face falling, and before she knew it, she was speaking on autopilot.

"Then why are you so afraid of me?"

"Huh?" Tenchi asked, caught quite of guard. He watched her face, her honey colored eyes growing more distant with each word she uttered.

"You're so afraid of me….I hug you, and you push me away…and when you're not pushing me away, you just don't do anything…it's hard to explain, but you get it…"

"Ryoko…" he started, but she wouldn't let him finish.

"And you're just always appreciating the others more than me. Ayeka…Washu….even _Sasami_…they all are so much…._better_...in your eyes." Ryoko felt like an absolute idiot when she felt stinging liquid in the corners of her eyes.

No. I will _not_ let him see me cry, she thought. Not Tenchi. That is not who I am. She blinked the tears away as fast as possible.

"Ahh Ryoko.." he said, quite exasperated. "Well, it's true and you know it!" she exclaimed.

She knew she caught him when he muttered her name and began to rub his forehead. He took a deep breath."Ryoko…you….I'm not gonna lie," he started, trying to find the right words. "Sometimes…you _do_ frighten me. I mean…you can't deny that sometimes you get a little….out of control." Ryoko felt a little bit of her wilt inside. "But that doesn't mean that I don't like you…you're…you're a very incredible woman…I…I really enjoy spending time with you…"he began. Ryoko knew he was nervous. She was positive. She could hear it in his voice. Suddenly something inside of her rejoiced—he was nervous, but he wasn't lying.

She pursed her lips, waiting. He continued, gaining courage: "You…you really mean a lot to me Ryoko…I'm not sure if it comes across clearly enough, but…you really are…so…so special to me…" he drifted off, not daring to face her.

Ryoko felt her cheeks heating up. No, it wasn't enough. She needed to know for sure. "Tenchi…I just need to know one thing." She turned to meet his gaze, her eyes hard and hopeful. "Do you have feelings for me, or not?" Tenchi stared back into her eyes, mind racing. The tension lasted for who knows how long. The wind began to pick up a bit, rustling Ryoko's already wild hair. She really was beautiful….."I think so." He admitted.

Ryoko's world suddenly froze. She could no longer hear the trees whispering to her, the water sloshing lightly from afar, the crickets chirping below them. She could hear nothing but her racing pulse in her ears. Did that really just happen? Did Tenchi just admit the thing she had waited so long for him to say?_ Only partially…._she said, trying to calm her growing excitement. In just a matter of seconds, so many thoughts rolled through her mind, questioning every secure feeling she had. But on the outside, Ryoko's face remained calm, somewhat somber. "Well let's find out…" she started, staring into his eyes with so much care and devotion, Tenchi could hardly believe he was looking at _Ryoko. _

"You should kiss me."

"What now??" Tenchi exclaimed, caught off guard. Ryoko composed herself and folded her arms. "Well you heard me lover boy. Kiss me. I need to know…_you_ need to know." She said, almost darkly.

Tenchi was speechless. Sure, he'd _like_ to kiss her, but he wasn't sure if he could bring himself to do so. He didn't budge. Ryoko felt her face began to fall. _I knew it was too good to be true."_

"Well I guess we're done here…" she started, proceeding to stand up, but was pulled back down forcefully, caught quite off guard. "What--?" she managed to get out. She turned to meet Tenchi's harsh gaze. Ryoko felt herself grow hotter as she noticed him inch closer and closer to her.

_No…he wouldn't…he's not….oh?....but…but HE IS! HE IS! HE'S GONNA DO IT! HE'S GONNA KISS ME! _

Tenchi let out a sigh and stopped. "Hold on…" he hesitated. Ryoko groaned loudly and made an effort to leave.

"No! Ryoko!" he cried, and he pulled her back towards him forcefully, pressing his lips firmly against hers and cupping her face

Ryoko let a soft sound escape her lips as she watched him kiss her. Her eyes were wide, and she was having a difficult time fathoming that this was truly happening. It took her a couple seconds to regain composure, and she let herself go….she let her eyes close, she let her lips respond to his…she felt tears begin to stream down her face. It was happening, it was _really _happening.

So this was happiness. This is what it felt like to be truly loved. Not 'loved' in the family sense, as she had felt that several times before by the others in the Masaki residence, but **loved** in the romantic sense. She felt so vulnerable, like a blushing school-girl. She felt like the world could come crashing down around them, but as long as Tenchi was there in her embrace, it wouldn't matter. Nothing mattered. Nothing could compare to the unexplainable sensation she felt as Tenchi's arms wrapped around her, embracing her tighter.

She felt a tear drip onto their lips, and knew Tenchi felt it too. He pulled away at the liquid feeling on his lip. "Ryoko…what's wrong…a-are you ok?" he asked, thinking he'd hurt her in some. She shook her head, quickly. "Absolutely nothing." She said through a slightly cracking voice. "Everything's perfect." He smiled at her, running his fingers through her untamed, cyan hair. "I guess my answer's a yes." He whispered into her ear, a bit shyly. Ryoko grinned, half to herself.

_Imagine the darkness in love with the light.._

She wiped a tear away and smiled at him, her eyes shining brightly. "Just like I'd knew it be." She said teasingly. She leaned in and met his lips once again, immersed in utter happiness for the first time.

_Imagine the light in love with the darkness._

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A/N Soo…ummm yeah how was it? Let me know! Thanks for reading!


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